1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the art of cooking appliances and, more particularly, to a gas cooking appliance including both electric and convection heating systems.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
In general, hybrid ovens are well known in the art. A standard oven includes an oven cavity having a volume of 4.0 cu. ft. The hybrid oven includes at least two heating systems, for example gas and electric heating systems, which are adapted to provide heat to the oven cavity in order to perform a cooking process. There also exist several examples of appliances which, in addition to the above, include convection fan systems for generating a heated airflow that contributes to cooking performance. Typically, the electric heating system is utilized during select cooking operations, namely, broiling. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,463,712 discloses a hybrid cooking appliance incorporating an electric heating element which is particularly used for broiling purposes. However, the electric heating element can also be used during a baking operation when the oven cavity requires heating above a predetermined temperature level. In this arrangement, once the oven has reached the required temperature level, a thermostat functions to automatically cut-off the electric heating element, and the oven temperature is thereafter maintained solely through operation of the gas heating system.
In another exemplary arrangement, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,926,837, a coiled electric heating element, or booster element, is positioned about a convection fan and operated in combination with a gas burner. As described, operation of the booster element is primarily used to shorten the initial warm-up time of the oven. Once the oven reaches a predetermined temperature, the booster element is de-energized, and a microwave heating system is energized, such that the overall cooking operation is conducted by a combination of gas and microwave heating systems. While each of these arrangements is effective at heating standard size ovens, e.g., a 4.0 cu. ft. oven cavity, when the size of the oven cavity is enlarged to, for example, 5.2 cu. ft., it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain a constant, uniform temperature in the oven cavity.
Therefore, regardless of these arrangements, there still exists a need in the art for a combination heating system for a cooking appliance having an enlarged oven cavity. Specifically, a combination gas and electric heating system in which the electric heating system is cycled in combination with the gas heating system in order to efficiently maintain a uniform, predetermined oven temperature. More specifically, there exists a need for a cooking appliance including an electric heating element which is located about a periphery of the convection fan system and operates in unison with the gas burner. The combined operation aides in the combustion of gas in order to maintain combustion byproducts within accepted agency standards.